1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is a board game, wherein players make words from multiple letter tiles. Unlike prior word games, the player must construct words of a particular number of letters, which correspond to numbers appearing on the game board. Each player has a colored moving game piece, and starts with 6 letters. Upon making a word of a number of letters shown on the board (shown to the other players), the player is allowed to move the piece diagonally or horizontally to the number on the board. Each of the 4 possible players begins with the game piece at the colored “start” side of the board, and the object is to move the player piece inward, toward the center of the board, to achieve victory. The players may also challenge the spelling of words made by their opponents, in the preferred mode of playing the game. If the challenger is correct, the player loses his or her turn, and if the challenger is incorrect, the challenger loses his or her turn. In addition, players may pass when unable to form words of a required number of letters. Finally, player must form a 7 letter word in order to move to the number “7” center area of the board, resulting in victory.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Numerous innovations for board games have been provided in the prior art that are described as follows. Even though these innovations may be suitable for the specific individual purposes to which they address, they differ from the present invention as hereinafter contrasted. The following is a summary of those prior art patents most relevant to the invention at hand, as well a description outlining the differences between the features of the present invention and those of the prior art.    1. U.S. Pat. No. 6,422,561, invented by Schroeder, entitled “Word Search Based Board Game With Directional Tiles”
The patent to Schroeder describes a word search based game including a playing surface divided into individual playing cells and a plurality of both alphanumeric playing and directional instruction tiles. The alphanumeric tiles are placed on the playing surface in a manner to form word following a word search format, that is to say words may be forwards or backwards, vertically, horizontally or diagonally and do not necessarily have to form words with every alphanumeric playing tile that happens to be adjacent on the board to the played alphanumeric playing tiles. Directional instruction tiles are of the same size, shape and color as the alphanumeric playing tiles so that they may be drawn at random with alphanumeric playing tiles, but indicate a desired direction in which to form a word and a bonus multiplier if a word follows said direction. Also provided are a plurality of category cards, one drawn at the start of a game, to provide a scoring bonus to words formed which meet the category. The game is adaptable to both a traditional board game format and a computerized format.    2. U.S. Pat. No. 6,378,868, invented by La Bossiere, entitled “Word Game”
The patent to La Bossiere describes a game in which each player randomly draws playing tiles, either blank or letter displaying, from a receptacle and constructs words with them, positioning them on her personal viewing area, with play transferring from player to player. At the end of her turn, each player enters her score and replenishes her playing tiles. Players can remove (“steal”) other players' playing tiles to construct at least one new word by adding at least one additional playing tile at her own personal viewing area. Play continues until the end of the game determined when all of the playing tiles have been removed and when none of the players can any longer construct a word with the playing tiles at the personal viewing areas. A basic score is achieved by placing a value of one on each tile used in a new word plus each tile reused to reveal additional words within that new word.    3. U.S. Pat. No. 6,367,798, invented by Lawal, entitled “Word Game”
In the patent to Lawal, a word game and method of playing the word game is described. The word game has a plurality of letter indicator members, each having a letter indicia corresponding to a selected letter or choice of letter, each letter indicia being assigned a predetermined point value for use in calculating an initial score value of a word formed from a random selection of the letter indicia. The game further includes a plurality of score manipulation members, each having a scoring indicia for manipulating the initial score value and determining a final score of the word. The score manipulation members are arrangeable in a random order from one game to the next.    4. U.S. Pat. No. 5,374,065, invented by Motskin, entitled “Method Of Playing A Word Forming Board Game”
The patent to Motskin describes a language building game for two to four players utilizing a grid marked game playing board, a pool of playing tiles each bearing a letter of the alphabet on its face, and a scoring sheet for each player. The game method includes placing a first plurality of tiles on the board by a first player, placing only a single tile on the board adjacent to the first plurality of tiles by the second player, wherein the first and second players continue to build about the first plurality of tiles and the single tile by placing additional pluralities of tiles on the board.    5. U.S. Pat. No. 5,312,112, invented by Cohen, entitled “Word Forming Board Game Including Elements Of Conflict”
Cohen's invention is a board game for two players or teams which includes elements of the games of scrabble and chess as well as other novel features, and includes a game board having a pattern of lettered playing spaces and a plurality of differently configured playing pieces or markers for each player or team. The differently configured playing pieces or markers are assigned patterns for their moves on the board depending upon their configuration. The pieces/markers are alternatingly moved to various lettered spaces on the board to claim letters for use in forming words. Points are awarded for each letter used in the formation of a word. A further aspect of the game is that no markers or pieces are ever captured or removed from play, even though the rules allow two opposing pieces to occupy the same space under certain circumstances. Other rules provide for skipping a turn or skipping the use of a letter under certain circumstances, and for the doubling or tripling of the point value for a letter when a marker is moved to a space already occupied by an opposing player's marker, depending upon the rank of the opposing marker. The configuration of some of the markers provides for the vertical stacking of two of those markers on the same space of the board.    6. U.S. Pat. No. 5,139,271, invented by Bez, entitled “Board Game”
In the patent to Bez, an educational tool in the form of a word game is disclosed. Each player starts on his own colored starting point at the bottom of the game area. Each player is represented by a colored alphabet set of blocks that are selected before the start of the game. During successive turns, the players must travel up and across the board by forming words while using one letter from the previous word, and must return the remaining letters to a return section of a tray with the letters facing down. All the letters used by a player from his selector holder to form a word must be substituted by the letters from a surplus section of a supply tray. To accomplish their goal and win the game, the players must enter their respective color goal or finish point on the top of the game area. If in a turn more than one player reaches his goal, the winner will be the one having the most letters in his color goal.    7. U.S. Pat. No. 4,892,319, invented by Johnson II, entitled “Word Game”
In the patent to Johnson, an apparatus for a word game is disclosed. A game board surface is divided into a number of squares into which playing pieces containing the letters of the alphabet are placed to complete a word. The various words are contained in groups which, when of a certain size, are considered to be an island which creates the right to start a new word independent from all the other which is an atoll. Except for atolls and the beginning of the game, any new letters added must form a word with those letters already on the playing field. New words which link one island to another island or atoll are isthmuses and capture the island or atoll to which they are linked as part of the territory for the player creating such an isthmus. Two iscosahedron dice having their faces numbered from 1 to 20 are used to randomly select numbers from 2 to 40. These numbers are related to the letters of the alphabet by a decoder with the frequency of number approximating the frequency of the use of the letters in making words. The seldom used letters of the alphabet are increased through the use of a number of bonus letters and the value of the individual letters vary based on a scoring code. The individual ownership Of Atolls, Isthmuses And Islands is shown by a color-coded transparent flag placed on top of one of the previously played letters.    8. U.S. Pat. No. 4,637,609 invented by Vanderhoof, entitled “Method For A Game”
The Vanderhoof patent describes a method and apparatus for a game in which a plurality of word-building structures, each having a plurality of playing spaces, are disposed about a gameboard. The preferred word-building structure comprises a pyramid shaped grid having 49 playing spaces. The pyramid is arranged in seven rows, with thirteen playing spaces in the base row and two less playing spaces in each succeedingly higher row. A word-building structure is associated with each respective competitor, as well as a color-coded set of playing pieces containing alphanumeric characters. These pieces are used by each competitor for building words in the horizontal, vertical, and diagonal directions in his respective word-building structure during a three minute word-building phase. The game board is then rotated to place each competitor in front of an opponent's word-building structure for an offensive phase, during which a competitor may strategically place his playing pieces to block selected spaces adjacent previously built words on an opponent's structure, thereby limiting the opponent's use of the blocked spaces in subsequent word-building phases and capturing the scoring value of the blocked words. Play continues with alternating word-building phases and offensive phases until one of a set of predetermined conditions occurs. Scores are tallied at the end of a game, at which time the point values of words are determined and the final determination of their ownership is made.    9. U.S. Pat. No. 4,341,387, invented by Freyman, entitled “Board Word Game Apparatus And Method”
In the patent to Freyman, a playing board is divided into a number of discrete playing areas bearing respective numerals in a reading sequence. A plurality of game pieces such as cards or tiles, whose aggregate number approximates the number of the areas, respectively bear letters of the alphabet. The number of game pieces bearing a particular letter corresponds generally to the normal frequency of occurrence of that letter. The player makes a plurality of random draws of a certain number of the tiles and, attempting to form words or parts of words, places them on respective areas of the board in relative positions that form words or are likely to form parts of words in subsequent plays of subsequent draws. Each play of a draw is playable only in areas having higher numbers than those played in a previous draw except when a play can no longer be so made whereupon play can be made in low numbered areas toward the beginning of the board.    10. U.S. Pat. No. 4,014,548 invented by Trilling, entitled “Word Game Having Single And Multiple Letter Tiles”
The Trilling word game includes multiple-letter tiles as well as single-letter tiles which are placed on successive spaces on a playing board. In order to receive score points, each player attempts to compose words on his own playing board on which is printed a single row of letter spaces. One of the letter spaces, designated as a “master space”, has placed thereon a randomly selected multiple-letter tile. Words are composed by locating single-letter tiles in successive letter spaces on the board so that the single-letter tiles merge with the multiple-letter tile. Each of the letter spaces is assigned a score point value, the magnitude of which depends upon distance to the master space. The score point value of a composed word is equal to the sum of the assigned score point values of the starting and ending spaces of the word. Bonus points are awarded when a joker tile used in composing a word falls on a “joker” space. A timer is provided to limit the time permitted a player for composing a word in order to speed up the playing action.
The relevant prior patents described above largely entails items such as: word forming games that are based on numerical point scoring; games in which players must move pieces in a circular pattern around a board; games in which a player begins by placing a single letter on a board and other players are required to build upon that letter; a combination Scrabble® and chess game where players challenge one another to gain control of particular spaces on the board; board games where players build words three-dimensionally in a pyramid shape; and various board games based upon crossword puzzles.
In contrast, in the present invention players make words of a particular number of letters which correspond to numbers appearing on a game board. Upon making a word of a number of letters shown on the board, the player moves a piece diagonally or horizontally to the number on the board. The object is to move the player piece inward, toward the center of the board, to form a 7 letter word in order to move to the number “7” center area of the board, resulting in victory.